The Night Owl
by prettydisaster75
Summary: AU - She owns the coffee shop that he stumbled into. He can't seem to stop coming in for a visit. Which would be fine, except he has a girlfriend and she doesn't want a boyfriend. So why does her heart sink when he leaves every day?
1. Blame It On The Rain

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans

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The rain pounded the sidewalks and windows relentlessly. It was 11 AM, but looking out the window you'd think it was nearing midnight. Raven frowned, resting her elbows on the counter and propping her chin in her hand - the rain deterred any potential customers from walking the two and a half blocks from Jump City University to her coffee shop. There wouldn't be as many students coming for their mid-morning caffeine buzz or professors stopping by to say hello.

It was a good thing Jump didn't have blizzards, Raven mused. Then business would _really_ take a hit.

She was still staring off into the distance when the bell above the door chimed. Raven jumped, then blushed at her own skittishness. A young man had stepped inside the small cafe, shaking water out of his blonde hair and looking at his phone. He looked around 20 years old and a bit confused at where he was.

"Welcome to The Night Owl, can I get you anything?" Raven said, brushing her hair out of her eyes. The young man walked up to the counter, still trying to figure out what store he had stumbled in to. He kept looking down at his phone.

"Er...hi. Where am I?" He said, as if Raven hadn't just told him the name of the cafe. She fought the urge to roll her eyes at him. As much as she loved the business from the college crowd, she hated how they seemed perpetually incapable of social interaction.

"This is The Night Owl," Raven repeated. "It's a coffee shop and bakery," she added at his blank look.

"Huh," he said. Glancing up at the menu board above the counter, he read several of the options. Glancing down at his phone again, he sighed and put it away. "Well since I'm already late for class, might as well make it worth my while. I'll have a medium vanilla latte I guess." Raven nodded at his choice, as if she approved of his order. "And a chocolate chip cookie." He added, seeing the display to his right.

As Raven prepared his drink, the man walked around the space, as if he had never been in a cafe before. Raven watched him out of the corner of her eye. She had to admit he was attractive - his eyes were a shade of bright green that wasn't common, and he didn't wear his pants around his ankles, as so many young kids did these days. She found herself wondering what his name was, what he was studying, and where he was from.

"Here you go," she called over to him. He turned around and smiled brightly at her before taking his cookie and coffee to a table by the front window. It was quiet again as he drank and Raven wiped the counter. She turned around to put the rag in the sink and when she turned back, the man was standing at the counter, his cookie in his hand. Raven stepped back in surprise.

"Is something wrong with your order?" She asked, a bit put out. No one had ever complained about her coffee before, which she was extremely proud of.

"This cookie is the best cookie I have ever had. Did you make it yourself?" He said, bouncing on the balls of his feet. Before Raven could respond, a loud, booming laugh echoed through the room.

"That's the best joke I've heard all day. Raven can't cook or bake to save her life!" A tall, African American man strode into the room from a door in the back. He wore a dark blue apron, and had flour all over his clothes and his face.

Raven frowned and folded her arms. "That's the only joke you've heard today, and it wasn't even that funny." She muttered. The tall man ignored her and stuck out his hand to the customer.

"I'm Victor, the baker for The Night Owl. I'm glad you liked the cookie. It was my grandmother's recipe."

"Garfield," the customer responded, shaking the offered hand. "It's nice to meet you. This place is really cool, how long have you guys been here?"

"I rented the space 5 years ago, then met Victor and hired him after I had been in business for about a year. Then, when I was sure this was going to work, I bought out the owner and now this whole building is officially mine." Raven answered. She wasn't sure why she felt she needed to prove herself to him. Maybe it was that most people assumed that Victor owned the place instead of her. Or maybe she wanted to impress him.

A chirping noise sounded from Garfield's pocket. He dug out his phone and grimaced.

"I really should get going," he said, dejectedly. The rain was still coming down hard, with no end in sight. "I don't really want to keep missing classes. But I'll be back!" He said, brightening up considerably. "I'll have to tell everyone how good to cookies are and how cute the barista is." Garfield winked at Raven, and she was sure the blush spread all the way from her hairline down her neck. Victor laughed loudly for the second time that morning as Garfield strode out of the cafe.


	2. Blame It On His Eyes

Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans!

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The rain refused to let up for the rest of the day. A few students braved the storm to come in and grab a bit of peace and quiet for studying, but for the most part, the café was empty. Victor came out from the kitchen to sit with Raven behind the counter.

"So, Garfield seemed like a nice guy," Victor commented as he flipped through a car magazine. Raven rolled her eyes.

"You talked to him for less than 2 minutes. You don't know enough to form an opinion of him." She said, refilling the napkin holders. "Did you order more coffee sleeves last night?"

"He had a firm handshake. That's always a good sign." He said, dog-earing a page. "Yeah, they should arrive tomorrow."

"Many people can have a firm handshake and still be awful people. Thank you." She responded. The bell rang above the door. Raven stood up, but sat back down when she saw who it was.

"Hello friends!" Kori practically danced into the coffee shop. She dropped her bookbag behind the counter and grabbed her apron off the hook in the corner.

"Hey Kori," Raven and Vic said in unison.

"Not very busy today, is it?" She asked, tying a bow behind her back with ease.

"Nope." Raven said, focusing back on the napkins.

"A guy came in earlier and hit on Rae." Victor told Kori, grinning. Kori squealed and jumped up and down. Raven rolled her eyes.

"He liked the cookies, so really, he was flirting with Victor." Raven pointed out.

"What did he look like? What was his name? What did he order?

"Tall, blonde hair, green eyes, firm handshake. Garfield. Vanilla latte and a chocolate chip cookie." Victor rattled off without hesitation. At that, Kori seemed to wilt. "What's wrong?"

"I know him. He is in one of my English classes. He has a girlfriend." Kori said, plopping down in a chair and sighing.

"I don't remember mentioning that I liked him, and that seems to be a key part of a relationship." Raven muttered. Victor waved her off.

"She's just sulking because he didn't leave his number behind." Vic teased. Raven huffed in annoyance but was prevented from saying what was really on her mind when the front door chimed. A frazzled woman with three small children walked in.

"Hi, welcome to The Night Owl. What can I get you?" Raven said, tucking her hair behind her ears and moving the napkins off the counter.

"Three small hot chocolates, please, and a large black coffee. Boys, stop pulling your sisters pigtails!"

"Coming right up." Raven said, smiling kindly at the children. "The small table in the corner has some paper and colored pencils, if they would like to draw for a little while."

The three children immediately ran to explore the art supplies and the woman sighed in relief.

"Thank you. I'll clean up after them."

"No need. I don't mind." Raven said. "Here, the coffee is on the house." She slid the drink across to the woman while Kori took the three hot chocolates over to the children. In the presence of an activity, they were remarkably well behaved.

"Really? That's awfully kind of you." The woman looked like no one had ever done something so kind for her in a while. Raven just smiled at her.

"I know what the difference a cup of coffee can do. Enjoy!"

The woman sat and enjoyed her coffee while the children colored. Raven, Kori, and Vic sat together behind the counter, talking softly.

"So tell me more about this girlfriend. Is it serious with him?" Victor asked, leaning toward Kori.

"They have only been together for a few months, but they are never apart as far as I can tell. He waits for her outside her classes." Kori whispered.

"I guess we'll have to keep looking then." Vic said dejectedly.

"Boo-hoo." Raven rolled her eyes at them. "Stop with the gossip about my love life. It hasn't worked out with any of your blind dates for me anyways."

"There is always a chance, my friend!" Kori said, her smile big. "The world is full of fish!"

"I think you mean there are plenty of fish in the sea." Vic chuckled.

"Well somehow, you always pick the smelly ones. Remember Adam? He was more concerned with his muscles than treating me like a human being." Raven reminded her.

"To be fair, Adam was not technically my choice. He was a friend of a friend of Richard's cousin. So you can blame him." Kori deflected.

"Speaking of, where is he?" Vic asked. "I thought he would be here by now."

"Study group. There's a psych test coming up." Kori replied. "He might be here later, but I doubt it. You know he will study til 3 AM if no one stops him."

The children ran up to the counter at that moment, showing off their artwork. The mother smiled at Raven and thanked her once more for the coffee and distraction, then they ventured out into the deluge. After the bell stopped ringing behind them, Raven pulled out her latest book from below the counter, and made herself a cup of tea. Vic went back to his car magazine, and Kori pulled out her homework.

Every once in a while, Raven would find herself losing track of what sentence she was supposed to be on, thinking instead of Garfield's green eyes. She would never admit it to her friends, but she was as disappointed as Victor was about his relationship status. He had seemed genuinely nice, someone she wouldn't mind getting to know better, and possibly welcoming into her little circle of loved ones. But Raven had read enough books to know that men with girlfriends usually did not being close friends with other women. It never worked out without someone getting hurt.

And when had books ever steered her wrong?


End file.
